Still and atmospheric, this early hand-colored postcard from the Bitterroot Valley captures a tranquil bend of the Bitter Root River near Stevensville, Montana — tall ponderosa pines and cottonwoods reflected in the slow-moving water, a distant wooden bridge barely visible through the haze, and a jumble of driftwood along the near bank lending the scene an untouched, frontier quality. Stevensville, Montana's oldest town (founded 1841 as St. Mary's Mission), sits in the heart of the Bitterroot Valley, and this card — published locally by the W.H. Roberts Post Card Co. of Hamilton, Montana — represents a charming piece of early regional photography and printing. The back is unused, with an ornate Victorian "Post Card" typographic header and the classic undivided/early divided back format.